I-4 construction area becoming wreck zone

A five-year anniversary getaway almost turned tragic in an Interstate 4 construction zone becoming notorious for wrecks, a trend that has the Florida Highway Patrol worried this holiday weekend.

PATRICIO G. BALONASTAFF WRITER

A rash of wrecks along an Interstate 4 construction zone between DeLand and Daytona Beach has the Florida Highway Patrol asking for the speed limit to be reduced. The normal 70 mph speed limit will come down in the wake of 47 wrecks in the road-widening area since the beginning of May. But that won't happen until Monday and after thousands of motorists pass through on their way to Volusia County's beaches for the Fourth of July, and to the races including the Coke Zero 400 on Saturday at Daytona International Speedway. Recent wrecks include a close call for a DeBary couple returning home from Ponte Vedra Beach from a five-year anniversary getaway that almost turned tragic Sunday. The couple were in their sport utility vehicle and entered the construction zone's lane shift Sunday when the driver saw a fast-moving tractor-trailer bouncing on the bumpy road. Then, the semi entered the same lane as their sport utility vehicle. “I honked my horn at him but that did not stop him,” Aaron Pulver said. “I swerved away so as not to be sandwiched.” Pulver said he ran off the road and crashed into a ditch. His SUV ended up on its roof on the wet road. He and his wife, Jennifer, escaped with minor injuries. The Pulvers' unfortunate experience on that stretch of I-4 — between DeLand and Daytona Beach — has become common in recent weeks, officials say. There were 47 crashes there between May 1 and July 1, said Sgt. Kim Montes, Florida Highway Patrol spokeswoman — none fatal. Citing the crashes, the FHP has asked for the speed limit to be lowered. Aaron Pulver said he was traveling about 65 mph, below the posted 70 mph in the construction zone, but he couldn't avoid the mistake made by the trucker. FHP says it's up to the Department of Transportation to set speeds for construction areas. “The speed limit will be reduced to 60 mph,” said Megan Olivera, Florida Department of Transportation spokeswoman. “Plans have recently been completed for the installation of the new signing and Motorist Awareness Systems (radar stations that tells motorists how fast they are going).” Olivera and Montes said the speed limit will be reduced next week and the public will be notified prior to the plan being put in place. Why didn't FDOT lower the speed limit in the first place? “It is generally not desirable to reduce speed limits during construction due to driver expectation, most drivers don't slow down,” Olivera said. Before construction started in May of last year, all traffic devices were installed according FDOT standards to make motorists aware of the road work, Olivera said. On Wednesday, two crashes occurred in the construction zone. At 8 a.m., a Chevy Tahoe pulling a trailer overturned near DeLand. Although no injuries were reported, the rollover tied up traffic on the eastbound lanes for at least two hours, officials said. Then at 1:15 p.m., a van rolled over closer to Daytona Beach and ended up in a ditch, Montes said. Most cases investigated by troopers show that drivers were distracted and could not negotiate lane shifts in time or were going too fast and could not keep control of their vehicles in the construction zone, Montes said. And when it is raining, the wet road is an added hazard that motorists have to consider, Montes said. The work to widen I-4 into six lanes started on May 9, 2012, and the project is expected to be complete by Jan 3, 2015, but the schedule may change due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances, Olivera said. “It is scary,” Pulver said of the stretch of road where his SUV flipped. “I got bumps and scrapes and my wife has a bad case of anxiety. She was beat up pretty bad by the seat belt.” Volusia County Councilwoman Pat Northey agrees the road is dangerous, particularly at night. Northey, who travels the road three to four times a week from Deltona to Daytona Beach on business, said she has seen semitrailers sway from side to side on the bumpy road. “It's about time they (FDOT) paid attention to that,” Northey said. “It is a very dangerous road as it is. It looks like there is a crash once a day out there.” Montes said that until the speed is reduced, she urges drivers to exercise caution. Most of the crashes have occurred where there are lane shifts. There were six crashes there in a day last month, Montes said. “What it comes down to is driver error,” Montes said. “We have thousands of drivers that navigate the road safely every day but unfortunately a few choose to drive too fast or get distracted.”